Three Guys One Cup Reach Wembley

The FA Cup has become a national institution to be treasured and despite suggestion that it may have lost a bit of its traditional importance on the sports calendar, a group of industry peers have proved that the romance is still very much alive with a brilliant adventure, Three Guys One Cup, that has seen them attend each stage of the competition so far.

While some fans are lucky to even attend one FA Cup fixture during a season, Josh Pearce, creative at Brothers and Sisters; Mark Lloyd, senior account executive at The Gate; and Steve White, marketing executive at WFHowes, have set out on a mission to attend each and every round this year – replays included - to experience and express their passion for the magic of the Cup.

Below, Pearce talks about the journey, which began back in August 2013, with a trip to Farley Way, home of Quorn FC, in the Extra Preliminary Round, and previews this weekend when they will arrive at Wembley for the second Semi Final tie between Hull City and Sheffield United on Sunday afternoon.

Tell us how you thought of the idea to attend each round of the Cup this year?

It was a conversation that came about after a couple of pints during the FA Cup Final last year.

We picked a local team from the Extra Preliminary Round, and traced our hypothetical path following the winner from each tie to the next until we got to the Final. After discussing the prospect of replays, dodgy grounds and a giant killing or two, it was too exciting not to.

Were you already attending the very early stages anyway or did you think up the idea then purchase tickets?

We had an account man on the job, so we had tickets sorted well in advance. He even set up a cost tracker to keep an eye on the budget. Typical, eh?

Who do you all support and has the project jeopardised your respective separate footballing allegiances?

We’re a Coventry fan, a Man United and a Newcastle fan, so we’re all suffering this season. Our FA Cup mission has been a welcome distraction from our league positions. And because our teams all got knocked out of the Cup early on, we’ve all been fickle.

And you even had to attend replays. How much were you hoping someone would score last minute, or did you relish the bonus game?

All told, we’ve only had to attend two dreaded replays. The first was Quorn FC vs Basford United. This was an epic match. Quorn – who were the underdogs – scored a last-minute equaliser and took the match to extra time. It went to penalties and Basford won 5-3. Proper FA Cup drama. We also saw Sheffield United vs Macclesfield but that was a 4-1 thrashing.

And you’ve been reporting from the games on Twitter; what feedback have you had?

Most people seem to love the idea. We’ve even inspired one man to do the same thing next year with the Scottish Cup. Yeah, try living with that guilt.

We had an interview with Colin Murray which was cool; apart from the fact he thought it was a food challenge. We literally have no idea how he came to that conclusion.

They've only gone and put us on the bloody radio...and by they we mean @ColinMurray and @talkSPORT. Tune in at 11.15 for some #FACup waffle.

— Three Guys One Cup (@3Guys_1Cup) February 14, 2014

Are there any funny or memorable stories to share from all the match days?

One of the moments of the tournament came at Quorn FC vs Basford. When the whistle blew for half time, pretty much all of the fans ran into the clubhouse to watch Holby City. Priorities in order.

At Carlton Town vs Matlock Town the home team lost their kit. They were rushing around looking for it, and their physio found it under the DJ decks in the clubhouse. Obviously.

Another highlight was when one of the Three Guys sat on the Charlton away bus to Sheffield. It took eight hours to get there, and when they did, he found out the match had been called off. Bless him.

How good does it feel to be within touching distance of Wembley now, having been through the cold winter at some less glamorous venues?

It feels good. Having visited Macclesfield’s ground four times, it was hard to believe we’d ever make it to the bright lights of Wembley, but now we’re getting close, it’s pretty bloody exciting.

We’re pleased not to have drawn a Premier League team so far. Fans of teams in the top tier often take their position in English football for granted. For some of the fans we’ve met along the way, they’ve been thrilled to get as far as the First Round. And really, that’s what the FA Cup is all about.

How much money have you spent so far and has it been worth it for the experience?

For one of the guys, who had to get the train from London a fair bit, it has cost around £1,000. But it’s been worth it. We’ve had some cracking days out, but we will always regret not visiting Rochdale’s famous canal.

And out of the four remaining teams, where does your loyalty lie?

It would be nice to see Sheffield United or Wigan win it, as two teams from outside the Premier League. But realistically it’s probably going to be an Arsenal vs Hull City Final – in which case we’ll all be supporting ‘Ull.

Will you be at the Final after the Semi and how will you go about getting tickets?

We’re off to Sheffield United vs Hull on Sunday. We’ve been lucky with tickets so far. When the games have been sold out, or tickets have only been sold at the stadium, some ticket offices have been accommodating after hearing the spiel about our quest. Getting tickets for the Final should be a challenge, but fingers crossed we’ll get there. So if any of you reading this have Budweiser as a client, sort us out some tickets, yeah?

Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about the adventure?

There is a secret fourth guy. A man who shies away from the glamour of being one of the Three Guys – even though, mathematically, it wouldn’t make sense. Mark Walters is our resident photographer and designer. If you’re a fan of how our site looks, it’s mostly all down to him (and Jon Bancroft who built it).

To see the Cup journey so far and follow future updates you can visit that very site at Three Guys One Cup.